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Once upon a
time, coffee was a major export earner in my country, then it was overtaken by
other sectors and is now ranked 4th after horticulture, tea, and tourism. The
industry now contributes about 3.2% of Kenya’s foreign exchange earnings, a
drop from the 40% contribution in the good years gone by. ..sigh
Every
morning millions of people get up to a fresh brewed cup of coffee which at
times they take for granted –coffee before work, on road trip pit stops, cups
brewed out of boredom, coffee dates- each of those cups necessary, effortlessly
and immediately accessible.
Those cups
are products of hours of work, years of patience, decades of struggle for
coffee producers and their families.
The KEDOVO
Coffee Project set out to improve the lives of coffee farming communities in
Nyeri , Kenya by connecting the coffee in your cups to these farmers. Farmers
like my father, and his father, farmers who grow coffee because it is a way of
living, surviving and because it is what their ancestors have left them.
Farmers like Kedovo farmer Wilson Mwangi, who struggle to send their children
to school in the city and hope they come back with some knowledge to help them
survive in the unpredictable future in coffee farming mountains of the
Aberdares.
Coffee in
my country is threatened by drought and climatic change. The coffee Leaf Rust
took over most of the farms in the crop year 2016/ 2017. Production dropped to
50%. Most farmers were helpless and felt there would be no solution. My father
was no exception and he lost most of his harvest. He had to remove the affected
coffee plants appx 300 trees. Growing up these coffee plants put food on our
table, by removing them a part of us went away with them…most of the farmers
feel the same, a piece of us is gone, because after all, this is their
livelihood. This is the way they eat. This is the way they send their kids to
school.
Almost a
year later most of his trees have sprouted, a dark cloud hangs still in his
eyes, hes still worried if the Leaf rust will strike again. Kedovo Coffee Project
continues to train the farmers especially on comprehensive soil management
techniques. Soil fertility is one of the main focuses and the farmers are
taught how to protect the soil through shade and how to effectively use “cover
crops.”
Over the
last years, the rain pattern has completely changed. Rain comes at a time when
you don’t expect it. Sunshine at time when you should be having rain. We are a
worried lot…For the coffee addicts in my adopted country the impact of what is
going on in my village will translate to slightly higher bill for a slightly worse
cup of coffee. But for my people the consequences will be much more dire…
Most of the young people in my village gave up the ''proffession'' of coffee farming to look for work in the bigger cities, experts say the coffee industry is struggling because of this.
I sit in my office on a cold winter, all grey outside ...and worry about my people. The plants that put food on our table. This is the pride of my people, their community roots...it cannot be replaced.
The Kedovo Project on Sustainable Education continues to support the education requirement of the children of its coffee producers. Many ask me, if you educate them, will they not leave the village? Will you not be faced with the same big problem of migration to cities? Our believe is that if these young people from my village had access to unlimited eduaction chances ,they would finish their degrees, come back to the coffee farms and put their newfound knowledge
into practice. What if we in the coffee industry worked hand in hand with them so they can aspire to be producers, like my father and his father, but producers with better Agronomic practices, we trained them to be roasters,
give them chances to be exporters and baristas...what if?
Can we all vision small coffee farms on the foothills of Mt Kenya, where you could find agronomists, chemists, Exporters ,social
workers....the list is long. Would we not rewrite the economics of coffee? By providing better future for these children we will be providong a future for the coffee industry.
We finally finished the Adminstration Block of Ndurutu Primary school.This school is 300 Metres from the Ndurutu Wet Mill which is one of the mills under Kedovo Coffee Project. The Adminstration Block was handed over to the community and will also be used as a meeting point for the Board of the Parents Teachers Association who now continues to do monitoring on the school with KEDOVO-Kenya offering advisory services.
Ndurutu Primary has currently 160 School kids from Pre-Unit to Class 8.
The purpose of the KEDOVO Social Development Projects in the coffee farming communities in Nyeri, is to promote economic development, direct trade and improve the
livelihoods of these small-scale coffee farmers, their families and
communities.We have long-lasting and trusting relationships with these communities, and our social development support is based on
individual community needs.
It has been
a wild incredibly busy 2017 for the Kedovo Coffee Project. 51 tonnes of green coffee, shipped to
Germany. You all are amazing…and thus have helped the KEDOVO Coffee Project to bring together these farmers to work towards
a common economic goal.

February is a month where the coffee season in Ndurutu is
completely changed.
We no longer have the hustle and bustle of the farmers
coming up the ranges with buckets full of coffee. It’s a month of main prunning,
hand weeding and foliar feeds application.
A month where my father spends the
whole day tendering to his beloved coffee
trees. It is also a month of anticipated hope as the trucks snake their way to
the city, delivering the green coffee ready for Export to faraway lands…Its also a month where the Kedovo coffee soldiers are busy cupping various coffees in readiness for contracting.
Kedovo coffee soldiers
Our coffee story begins in 2013 amongst the villages of
Kiganjo, Central Kenya just after the main season had ended and the
farmers yet again had been at the mercy of the middlemen. We set out to start rebuilding our lives, and
the Kedovo coffee project was founded on a shared dream. A dream where coffee
farmers in Nyeri, central Kenya would grow their coffee alongside their food
crops to provide the much needed cash where they would eat regular meals, send
their children to school, build new and safer homes ,develop the social amenities
in the village and even set up businesses.
Discussions with Farmers from Ndurutu on future of the project
Coffee leaving the dusty village
we have come a long way, but i do still worry for my people
The shared dream was to use coffee as a tool of transformation.
These were people who were tired of emergency relief and subsisting on the
generosity of others but they knew they could not succeed alone, and we had to
build relationships. Relationships with coffee roasters, coffee drinkers and in
turn build a market for our coffee.......
Building relationships with Roasters from Germany
Growing up in the village together with the Kedovo gang, we always felt the need to ''escape'' , but how can we escape from ourselves? I spent the last 67 days in the village, unlocking memories long forgotten, working with the farmers, learning from each other and finding solutions to the obstacles we face in our shared dream...
Our profit from selling the coffee has been going back to
Kiganjo ,Nyeri in Kenya, to the farmers
and their families to improve the quality of their lives through projects with
schools and communities. In Jan 2016 we started the Kedovo School Renovation Project -Ndurutu Primary school. At that time we was a worried lot. The school has ca.170 kids with ages of 3-15 years. The Infrastructure was pathetic, we had dilapilated roofs, classrooms without doors or windows ...the list is long.
The power of humanity prevailed, and you ALL without even knowing us, believed in us, and molded us into the Organisation that we have become. YOU believed in us and shared with us the meaning of community, and we inturn -not knowing that we were looking- we found ourselves. YOU have all been AWESOME....and The Ndurutu Primary School is fully renovated and handed over to the community .We did this with dancing and praises on 20th Jan 2017. The shared dream....
we had to begin our day making 400 pcs of Kenyan Chapati phew!!
community in attendance
Its done....
The Shared Dream....
Assistant County Commisioner adressing the community
The gang ;)
Our Mugithi Dance cant miss on such an occassion
Part of the school
Handing over to the school Adminstration and Local Authorities
Its done...
The shared dream....
Without YOU buying our coffees, this would have been so much harder, and for this on behalf of my people our sincere gratitude.
We all have dreams….coffee farmers have dreams of realizing
the fruits of their labour.
In Sept we partnered with Green Planet for the supply of
Solar power to several families within Kiganjo Location. We continued with the
installations and in Jan & Feb we installed 14 more systems. Special thanks
to Katrin of KEDOVO Volunteers for her commitment in supporting this project.
Solar power is something we all take for granted especially
in the developed world, - hej if a room is too dark we flip a switch, if our
cellphone battery dies we plug it in...how many of us eat cold food? hell no!
we toss it into the microwave.
Farmers like Mama Carol below , live without electricity...
Davie showing Katrin how a paraffin ''lamp'' operates
These solar systems will not only provide safe
clean energy but contribute Economically in the sense that some of the
families can start small businesses from profits derived through
"charging phones" for others at a fee, use this money to buy groceries
or as a booster to other income generating activities.
Katrin deliberating how to do the wiring ;)
Beneficiary...full with joy
long term partnerships...
The human impact of these systems is incredible! Access to
electricity can make life in rural villages much more comfortable minimizing
the families the adverse effects of smoke from burning kerosene indoors, and it
becomes easier to perform household chores (for women in particular), and for
children to do their homework.....The Shared Dream.
It is difficult to put word into gratitude for this immense
support. We still have more families to support and this we can only realize
with the purchase of our coffees.
another happy beneficiary
Towards our work in ensuring that we supply YOU with high
quality coffee from the Kedovo Coffee Project, one of the crucial step along
the way is the drying of the coffee, which happens between harvest and export.
Ndurutu Wet Mill where most of our project is centred has a lot of old and
broken drying beds. Thanks to LOPPOKAFFEEEXPRESS and Lukas der Leipziger Baker
for their support and the partnership over the years, we were able to support
the mill with 2 new metal/steel drying beds that are more durable compared to
the timber ones.
most of the drying beds are more than 20 years old and in dire need of repair / new ones
old, broken timber beds
welding of the new drying beds
''transporting the steel bed from welding area
Githinji the Mason making sure nothing is left to chance
Handing over the drying beds to Joseph the Mills Manager
To my community coffee is life... and its what we know how to do. Most of the coffee from last season was affected as mentioned earlier by leaf rust and the coffee berry disease, and most farmers lost the harvest...but we continue growing coffee.
My father lost a lot of his cherished trees...but he soldiers on, and together with other farmers they have started re-planting new coffee bushes as well. The waiting begins; Another 4 years of renewed hope...
my father cutting off the affected branches
The kedovo soldiers hunting for new coffee seedlings
Renewed hope...
Rainfall between the month of November to January was very poor for the crop as well, and due to these factors we have a shortage in the harvest.
The Agronomy and technical trainings continues and we focus not only on the improvement of quality for our coffees but as well as the quality of life for the farmers that work tirelessly
to produce these amazing coffee.
training farmers on what roasters look for in a coffee
To continue supporting these communities we have on offer
Green coffee (Rohkaffee) from Ndurutu Wet Mill & Thageini Wet Mill Season
2016/2017 F.O.T Bremen or Hamburg, transport within Germany & the EU
arrangable at a cost. Kindly contact Soni or Nicole for information on samples,
prices and contract. Lets rewrite the economics of coffee together...
For roasted Chania coffee kindly purchase from our OnlineShop or visit our offices in Kaltenkirchen. Visit the shop & Cafe 'Ein Welt
Laden' located at the VHS in Kaltenkirchen , am Kretemoor 40, or pass by at our
stand at the Kaltenkirchener Wochenmark every Saturday from 07:00 hrs to 12 noon.
Be part of our story....

It’s the last day of 2016. I sit outside my mother’s
house and look at the fog covered Mt Kenya. It has been quite a journey...
View of Mt Kenya from Ndurutu Village
36 months, 992 Farmers, 93 Tonnes of Green beans
shipped to Germany and an amazing load of coffee friends and family. This is
the story of Kedovo Coffee Project. This is the story of a continuous journey
of the coffee producing community of the Abedare Mountains selling their coffee
directly to Germany.
Coffee drying at Thageini Wet Mill
The last three years
have been amazing though not easy. We have met and made great coffee
friends, long term partnerships with the goal of strengthening these farming
villages have been made, and we are heading towards progressive and sustainable
farming practices. The grey hairs on my head tell it all......
What coffee producers have needed is a reliable market
that offers a good, steady price for coffee beans.The Kedovo Coffee Project has
done more than just to improve trade relationships and access to International
market. We have continued to ensure that part of our revenue is returned to
these coffee farming communities to support social development projects. A total of 8,785 farming families have
directly benefited from these services.
Farmers from Kedovo Coffee Project
A Kedovo Coffee farmer enjoying a cup of Kenia Ndurutu roasted by One Take Coffee from Hamburg
The main harvest is coming to an end, we have had
delays and problems this season. The rains didn’t come on time. Coffee from most of the farms was affected by Leaf rust. My father lost most of his harvest, he is a sad man.This year’s
problems feel even larger than the last. But I have hope and comfort……
Picking of the last cherries from the fields
My mother hand selecting ripe cherries
We have been meeting our farmers the last weeks,
visiting their farms, having discussions, drawing plans for the project
together, receiving first hand experience to help us understand the health of the cooperatives and the
challenges faced by the people responsible for our delicious coffees, and finding solutions together as a community. Its from these meetings that we can hear about the challenges and the successes from the harvest. Its also from these meetings that we can give feedback to our farmers about the previous harvest.These are my people...
Zackie holding discussions with a group of coffee farmers
Farmer's field day, learning all about cupping and what a roaster looks for in a coffee
I have hope and comfort that a time will eventually come when we can start celebrating improved quality, meet market demand and the farmers be in a position and have the ability to understand coffee markets.
The work of KEDOVO Coffee Project is to avail coffee from these communities directly in Europe and connect foreign roasters with these farmers in order to forge long term partnerships for both parties. We continue promoting and ensuring Transparency in the way Kenyan coffee is traded. Farmers need to know what happens to their coffee once its sold to importers and roasters.
Kedovo Coffee Trip dec 2016
Yes we can do this!!!
Our work in supporting the Social development of these communities has not waivered. This has only been made possible by you all who continue purchasing our coffee.
The Project on Installation of Solar Power Systems for families of Ndurutu Wet Mill has been progressing as planned and we have managed to Install Solar systems for 12 families so far. The target for this
project is to cover 50 farmers.
supporting a Kedovo Coffee Farmer with a solar system
We know and believe that the livelihoods of these communities will only be changed if coffee farming is economically sustainable. We continue supporting sustainable coffee farming practices
that respects the crop, the soil and the farmers. We supported Ndurutu Wet Mill
with Inputs such as Protective farming gear and Fertilizers. This is the only
way we can continue planting seeds for a better future.
Zackie & Joseph ensuring nothing is left to chance
Caro our coffee soldier, thanking on of the farmer's for his dedication in coffee farming
Nicole handing over protective clothing to the Chairman of Ndurutu Wet Mill
support of inputs- fertilizers to improve soil nutrients
Karl Heinz helping a farmer load a bag of Fertilizer at Ndurutu wet mill
I grew up in a world of struggle, survival but amidst all hope. My father believed that education was the only way we would overcome our poverty situation. We had the best education he could afford through proceeds from coffee production. My community has no other source of income. We rely on coffee. Our Kedovo project on Education for Sustainable development for the children of our coffee producers is rooted deep in our hearts. We have been there...we know the worries of not knowing if tomorrow you will be in the classroom, we know the frustrations of learning in a dusty, leaking classroom. We know the embarassment of going to school in torn uniform...
The renovation of Ndurutu Primary school phase two
started in December 2016 to finish up the remaining classrooms.
beginning of second phase of renovations
renovations underway
renovated part -phase two
Non renovated class- Phase two
renovated classes-phase two
In December we began our new project which is the
construction of an Admnistration Block for Ndurutu Primary School. This would not have been possible without the support of our development partners BINGO Projektförderung Schleswig Holstein and you all our coffee gang. And on behalf of my people, our sincere thanks...
Zackie of Kedovo showing off the plans for the new adminstration block to chairman of PTA and the Local government authorities
communities for each other
construction of modern Adminstration Block for Ndurutu Primary underway
To continue supporting these communities we have on
offer Green coffee (Rohkaffee) from Ndurutu Wet Mill & Thageini Wet
Mill F.O.T Bremen or Hamburg, transport within Germany & the EU
arrangable at a cost. Please contact Soni Schneidewind or NicoleBoedtger for information on samples, prices and contract.
For roasted Chania coffee kindly purchase from our
Online Shop or visit our offices in Kaltenkirchen. Visit the shop & Cafe
'Ein Welt Laden' located at the VHS in Kaltenkirchen , am Kretemoor 40, or pass
by at our stand at the Kaltenkirchener Wochenmark every Saturday from
07:00 hrs to 12 noon.
The journey continues.....

The Fall is here, temperatures have dropped drastically.The streets are devoid of life, the leaves changing colour and falling off, the nights extremely cooler ...its a time to bring in the harvest.
view of my street with most of the leaves falling
Far away in the village of my birth, it is the main season for coffee. Only it has not rained in weeks, the harvest is not good and my people are a worried lot...
a section of my father's coffee farm suffering from the Nov heat
My
father turned 66 years old in Sept. His
family has been coffee growers all their life. He wakes up at 6 in the morning
and heads to tend his beloved coffee trees whether in rain or sunshine. My
mother will then take him breakfast around 8:am, breakfast which is mainly a cup
of fermented porridge or some thin tea, which he will gulp while standing with
a faraway look towards the mountain….My father planted his own coffee trees 35 years ago, my mother says that is the day he ‘’fell in love’’.
My father at the Coffee Tree Nursery checking out new coffee variety seedlings
My Paternal
grandmother left the village when my father was only 16 years old. She left, in
the search of work in the cities ; far away from the coffee growing villages of
the Aberdares. She never returned….She died alone, away from her family. They
buried her in a remote village on the banks of the Narosura.These are stories told by my father as we grew up, stories
told in the evening by the cooking fire as we waited for my mother to cook the
staple food of maize and beans. My
grandmother left because of all the
frustrations and hardship associated with coffee production.49 years later, not much have changed…my
community still faces the same hardships.
delivering of parchment
Milling of coffee at Thageini wet mill
Thageini women coffee farmers #kedovocoffeeproject
My family
is no different from the rest of the coffee producers , their days are days
filled with uncertainty, and at times with hope of a better
tomorrow.
Mom picking coffee at home
The #kedovocoffeeproject tries to pull back the curtain on the everyday lives
of these amazing coffee farmers so that everyone concerned about the future of
specialty coffee better understands the
complex realities of life in these coffee farming villages , where we live and
work every day, where our hope is that coffee can become a better tool of
development.
one of our farmers processing coffee .#kedovocoffeeproject
Coffee is a product of a long gruelling agricultural process. Years of dedication and hardwork..our work focuses extensively on the economic and social development of the people who dedicate their lives to provide us with our morning cups of coffee.
Its in this line that we have continued to support the Social Development of the communities of Kiganjo. Last month the KEDOVO gang kick started our new project on Solar Energy. We partnered with Green Light Planet Kenya Ltd to support farmers from Ndurutu Wet Mill with Solar power as an alternative source of Energy. The project will benefit 20 Farmers in the first Phase. This would not have been possible without the immense support from Heinz and Nicole of Sandtorkai Handel Papenhagen who believed us from the beginning that coffee can change lives. This would not have been possible without you all who purchase our coffees whether Green Beans or Roasted in Germany, Austria & Norway and on behalf of my people our sincere gratitude.
Technical Training of KEDOVO team & Vocal farmers by Green Light Planet
Many coffee farmers fail to earn a reliable living from coffee production. Can we level the playing field for coffee growers? We can do this by forging simplified supply chains, by forming genuine relationships with these amazing people, by giving them chances to participate in the trading of their coffee, by making sure we support the social development of these communities. My country has over 6 million people who depend on coffee production Mrs Chau on the photo below is one of them. She walks 3 kilometers to buy paraffin to use for lighting. Sometimes she does not have the 50 shillings (0.50€) to buy the paraffin and will have to improvise by lighting her house with the glow of the cooking fire .The Kedovo gang installed a system in her house...#coffeechanginglives
Solar power can provide a simple evening lighting that most of us often take for granted in cities. It can bring a huge change in the life of the growing rural generation. Our work is to facilitate channels of education for our coffee producers and their families. Solar power can bring to them the same learning tools that most urban population has. Solar energy will play a pivotal role in bringing a turnaround on Rural Exodus.
More happy families....
Growing up in a coffee growing community in Kenya my life was difficult..Coffee was and is still my Family's source of income. I walked kilometers to school barefoot and in worn shoes, sometimes on an empty stomach. At night we studied under our old kerosene lamp that my mother received as a gift on her wedding day from her family. Sometimes we didn't have 5 shillings to buy the kerosene and we owed the village shop.. We did our homework using the dying frames of the kitchen fire.Three and half decades later, many of the children of my community undergo through the same struggles. Our new project on Solar Energy brings hope and freedom to study, freedom and chances for those children to change their lives! Be part of our journey towards the economic and Social sustainability development of the communities who produce our coffee.
Zackie of Kedovo & Joseph the Mills Manager in Ndurutu showing one of the farmers how to charge her phone using Solar power
the kids from the above beneficiary learning in the evening by use of a kerosene lamp
learning using solar power as a means of energy #coffeechanginglives
Nyeri where our #kedovocoffeeproject is located is
home to extensive networks of small-scale coffee producers. The fertile lands produce a broad range of
tropical and temperate crops, and the 90% or more of the population in this rural
area combine household food production with coffee acting as the cash crop. Cash is needed to pay school
fees for kids, buy school requirements (books, uniforms etc), pay for transport
to health centres, and then meet doctor and medicine charges. Cash also has
become critical for many non-market exchanges and other social obligations.
The economic realities of these small scale farmers
dictates the levels of investment, whether back to the farms itself or social
development. A strong coffee sector stimulates economic and social development.
Our hope is that by shedding enough light on the issues that play themselves
out here every day in coffee-growing communities, we will contribute in the
continued movement of the coffee industry toward more sustainable sourcing
practises, at the same time supporting the social and economic development and
enrich the lives of the farmers who grow our coffee..
coffee patchment drying at the Ndurutu Wet mill
We believe that the future of coffee belongs to the organized, and organized farmers are the engine to growth and sustainability in the coffee sector.
We have mainly focused on Education as a means of sustainable development, where we know that though its better than in the past, we still have a long way to go.
Farming itself is a business and its important that we equip the children of the coffee producers with better chances in education and in turn they are abreast with challenges and opportunities in the coffee industry.
On Sept 30th , the Kedovo gang in Kenya finalized the first phase of the Renovation of Ndurutu Primary School in Kiganjo and handed it officially to the community.
Davie of Kedovo trying to remember his handing over speech ;)
Renovated hall which serves as a dining area for the school children
singing & dancing ;)
Kedovo team handing over first phase of the school to the community
Renovated phase: 5 classes and a Hall
Lunch time, newly built kitchen
We still though have a lot of work ahead of us where we still have 6 classes remaining to renovate and modernize, we discussed with the community and plan to build an Administration block which will house the Staffroom, Head and Deputy offices and a secure storage facility for the school books etc.
The current rooms used as offices will be modernized and equipped to be used as a Library and Computer lab respectively. By bringing in knowledge and resources to these communities, we support them to access information and communication technology which is becoming increasingly necessary to enhance equitable trade and survival.
Deputy head office- Ndurutu Primary school
head teacher office- Ndurutu Primary School
Teachers (Staffroom) Ndurutu Primary
Part of the remaining classes to be renovated
Coffee has no future without my people and other coffee producing communities all over the world, growing, picking and processing it. What will make the next generation of coffee producers decide to continue farming coffee? what will keep them in the farming villages and not migrate to cities? what will make these communities have sustainable livelihoods from coffee production? We cannot keep on throwing around the word 'Sustainability in coffee' if we cannot have solutions to those questions. We need to keep investing in sustainability of these communities both in social and economic development as well as in practises of the farmers whom we need to assure steady demand of their coffee at a fair price. Lets make these communities thrive...
The Early crop Season 2016 was really early, we managed to mill Ndurutu & Thageini coffee on time.
These great coffees arrived in Germany last week and we are amazed by the dedication of these two communities.
Arrival of our coffee container in Bremen last week
#kedovocoffeeproject crop 2016
At the warehouse...we are ready people!!
Thageini AA& Ndurutu AB Top #kedovocoffeeproject
This time we have 3 qualities in Stock: Thageini AA Top, Ndurutu AB Top and Ndurutu PB
The #kedovocoffee is coffee that's grown in a manner that respects the environment and it's people. It's a coffee that offers economic and social sustainability to millions of families whose livelihoods depend on it. Be part of our Story....
To continue supporting these communities we have on offer Green coffee (Rohkaffee) from Ndurutu Wet Mill & Thageini Wet Mill F.O.T Bremen or Hamburg, transport within Germany & the EU arrangable at a cost. Please contact Soni Schneidewind or Nicole Boedtger for information on samples, prices and contract.
For roasted Chania coffee kindly purchase from our Online Shop or visit our offices in Kaltenkirchen. Visit the shop & Cafe 'Ein Welt Laden' located at the VHS in Kaltenkirchen , am Kretemoor 40, or pass by at our stand at the Kaltenkirchener Wochenmark every Saturday from 07:00 hrs to 12 noon.
and our work continues.....

Three weeks ago the 2016/2017 coffee picking season began in my Country. It will be 7 months of intense labour.
Wilson , one of our dedicated farmers and his Family
During the coffee season, my grandmother, just like
most of the other farmers in the village walks 2 kms from her
home near the Sagana river, to deliver the coffee produce to the Ndurutu
Wet mill for processing. Her mornings are mainly spent picking the red berries
amidst unseeing eyes. Long ago i asked her how old she is and her
reply was that she was married to my grandfather before he was
shipped off to Burma to fight for the Queen. I guess she is in her middle 80's.
My grandmother carrying a basket of coffee at her back
My grandmother, like
other small scale coffee producers in the world, are the people
responsible for producing majority of the world‘s green beans.
These are people who often struggle to adequately feed their
families...these are communities that face mountains of challenges
thus becoming very difficult for them to thrive and to produce best
quality coffee. My Country is faced with an aging population of coffee producers and a youth generation totally uninterested in coffee production.The list of challenges that they face is limitless
and actually changes with every season of coffee that comes…
Most of us in the
coffee sector have done tremendous efforts to support these coffee
farming communities, but the main challenge ahead of us, that we all
are afraid maybe to talk about is that my aging farmers are retiring
and the next generation of coffee producers is not interested. My
grandmother needs 2 hours to walk the 2 kms to the mill, i cannot
promise she will be able to do the same come the next season. I
worry...the young people in my village do not view coffee farming as
a dependable source of income.
Kedovo Coffee Farmer- Ndurutu Village
My life is filled
with memories...memories of my childhood and the hardships that come
from coffee production. Memories of stuggle,despair and hope of a better tomorrow. Memories of
my mother trekking more than 10 kms in search of vegetables from neighbouring villages, vegetables that she would later on hawk at the
village market to supplement our meagre earnings from coffee
production. Like most of my peers from the farming villages we left
the village not as a choice but as a necessity. Three decades later
my village is still faced with the same challenges of the youth
permanently leaving the farms and migrating to cities in search of
better economic opportunities. The next generation of coffee farmers
is not interested.
Me and you have the capacity to Change all this- can you imagine if we empowered These communities how many lives we would Impact? not forgetting the raise in Quality of a greater amount of coffee.
This is among the
challenges faced by the Kedovo Coffee Project- and its our work to
fully invest in the next generation of the coffee producers.
Discussing with our Partners in Jan on how best to include the youth in coffee production
Its the work of
KEDOVO e.V to not only tell these stories but to support these communities to thrive under all economic, social and environmental
conditions. Its our duty to make sure the young people of my village
see a future in coffee farming. We cannot only advocate for quality
in the cup if the quality of life of the coffee producers is not
adressed- this is the only way i can assure you of a sustainable
coffee.
﻿
﻿
Kedovo Coffee Project- Coffee ready for Export
The last months have
been busy for us, MSC Luciana docked last month at the port of
Hamburg. Onboard was a container load of green beans from our Kedovo
Coffee Project. This time we imported coffee from the Thageini Wet
Mill from Nyeri. We shipped both Kenya AA and Kenya AB Top.Thageini is a great coffee, a coffee with many
untold stories..
﻿
﻿
Arrival of a Container load in May from Kedovo Coffee Project-Thageini Wet Mill
The sale of this coffee continue to Support not only the economic development of our coffee Producers but greatly supports KEDOVO e.V's Projects on Social development in the villages of Kiganjo , Nyeri- Kenia.
My coffee Story is the Journey of the village of my birth towards economic and social sustainability through coffee production, ist a Story of where the children of coffee Producers get Access to better Education chances in their lives, a Story of a world where the coffee Producers got enhanced with Trade Information and trade channels, a Story where we could finally one day measure the degree of Stability. I dream of a world where my community benefited from the 2.25 Billion Cups of coffee consumed daily ...that is our coffee Story.The untold stories.
In April,together with our Partner Nicole of Sandtorkai Handel we presented the Kedovo Coffee Project- Sustainability in Practise at the Coffee Roasters Congress in
Hamburg with over 170 attendees.
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Nicole & Soni presenting the Kedovo Coffee Project- Photo Credit :Sinje Hasheider
My work at the coffee industry has
been what my younger brother calls The Fates. You see when my father
started our small coffee farm at the slopes of Mt. Kenya i was barely
a year old. Its said that it was one of the hottest season in my
country, and my mother struggled watering the young coffee trees everyday for almost a month. She carried me on her back and walked the 1.5 km to the
Chania River, carrying a 20 litre jerrican of water up the hill as more than 10 times a day to save the
young tender coffee trees from dying.Then came the Famine and most of those trees dried up. My father's heart is still heavy with pain of a loss...
These are stories
from my childhood, stories told by my mother as we grew up. She told
of stories of my father‘s determination and his love for coffee. My
father always dreamed of owning a coffee farm-little did he know how
it could completely change our lives. Little did he know of the
experiences and friendships we would cultivate with the people that
we have and will meet in our journey. I cant imagine how life would
have been without his beloved coffee trees...i cant imagine how my
life will be if i dont spend it helping those farmers obtain a
sustainable market for their produce….thats my story.
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Coffee is my world....Photo Credit: Sinje Hasheider
The KEDOVO gang in
Kenya have been super busy. Their work is to strengthen the community
and give them hope again, hope to continue growing world‘s best
coffee. This is only possible by making coffee more economically
compelling, by supporting the farmers in building greater economic
and social opportunities. Our main focus in social development has
been the overhaul of Ndurutu Primary School.The school infrastructure
has detererioted and with this kind of learning atmosphere most of
the children will perform poorly and well below students in municipal
( town) schools.
Last month the gang finished the construction of a modern Kitchen block. This would not
have been possible without the great support from BingoProjektförderung Schleswig Holstein, Nicole & Heinz of
Sandtorkai Handel Papenhagen and all our amazing coffee buyers.
One might wonder why
a school kitchen? The untold stories.....
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Old kitchen Ndurutu Primary School
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cooking at the old kitchen
The Kenyan school
system is that school time begins at 7:00 am and ends at 16:00 pm. In
between you have a lunch break of 1 hour. During my school days we
used to rush home for lunch so long as we were back to school within
this one hour. Can you imagine running for 3 kms home, eating and
coming back the 2 kms again within 1 hour? Now you have your answer
why many of us Kenyans are marathon runners… ;) sigh All
this changed and now the students are obligated to take with them
packed lunch to school. Most coffee producers live from one day to
the next. We do not have fridges and graneries stacked up with food.
Most families eat up all what they cook in the evening and when
tomorrow comes we find a solution tomorrow...the untold stories
And the construction began....
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Zackie the Program Coordinator planning on the construytion of a modern School kitchen- Ndurutu Pri
ground preparations
delivery of construction materials: Stones, sand etc
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and the gang got down to work..
Davie of Program Director KEDOVO-Kenya making sure no Stone is unturned ;)
great Progress
a view of the new and old kitchen
And we continued........
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Almost there!!!
Our model is designed from the
ground thinking of communities being there for one another, designed to support the coffee producers through economic and social
sustainability.
I am a daughter of a coffee Producer, i only know too well what their children go through in life, i know the endless worries we had growing up whether my father would afford our School fees or we would have to drop out of School like many from the village, worries of whether my mother would be able to sell enough vegetables to be able to put Food on our table.. the worries of whether there was gonna be a way out of the cycle of the unknown. My father and his Family have been coffee Producers for more than 50 years, ist our life. My Story is not different from the rest of the People from the village, we all depend on coffee production. I grew up and left but my community still depend upon coffee as their Primary source of income.
The greatest threat of social sustainability in these communities,results from the economic conditions faced by many. This has a direct Impact on Access to education, infrastructure, housing etc. The Kedovo Coffee Project gurantees economic and social sustainability of the community who produce our coffee. It has the values of Transparency, Traceability and Sustainability. Our direct contact with the People who produce our coffee is our strength and foundation to a sustainable approach...
Finally! the new School kitchen was ready
cooking at the new kitchen
Cooking Station- new kitchen
After the construction of the School kitchen, we started a Feeding Program
on 4th May 2016. This would not have been possible without the
support of Monika and Horst Schumacher Foundation. For this great cooperation we will always be grateful. The feeding Project currently supports 150 Pupils of Ndurutu Primary School. These are children of our coffee Producers from the villages of Ndurutu and parts of Kirichu. The area is served by the Ndurutu Wet Mill whose coffee is available in Germany for sale, both as green beans and Roasted coffee.
Davie with Class 8 pupils on the first day of the feeding program
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making a misture of Kenya's staple Food of maize and beans
Zackie raiding the Kedovo farms for vegetables for the feeding program
Lunch time ;)
Thankyou our coffee Family ;)
We are ready!!
George the chairman of Ndurutu Primary and Davie delivering maize and veg
We have a lot of work ahead of us, we need to construct a Dining Hall for the School, renovate the remaining classes, construct a new Adminstartion block- the list is endless. We can make all this happen. All you have to do is purchase our coffee.....
To the Roasters in Germany and Austria,who continue supporting our work, on behalf of my community of coffee Producers, my sincere thankyou- without you all this would have been so much harder. All of you need to remember that- we all together have the capacity to build our own ship, it certainly is a Long process but it gives hope. It gives hope to communities miles away from here....it gives hope for a better future. Our cooperation together will empower these communities and raise the Quality of a greater amount of coffee.
To continue supporting these communities we have on offer Green coffee (Rohkaffee) from Ndurutu and Thageini Wet Mills F.O.T Bremen, transport within Germany & the EU arrangable at a cost. Please contact Soni Schneidewind or Nicole Boedgter for information on samples, prices and contract. Our current offering is for KENYA AB TOP- Kedovo Coffee Project.For roasted Chania Coffee kindly purchase from our Online Shop or visit our offices in Kaltenkirchen. Visit the shop & Cafe 'Ein Welt Laden' located at the VHS in Kaltenkirchen , am Kretemoor 40, or pass by at our stand at the Kaltenkirchener Wochenmark every Saturday from 07:00 hrs to 12 noon.
and our work continues.....

Ndurutu village; Kenya and
Hamburg Germany are separated by thousand of miles but united
together in a common love for coffee. The community in Ndurutu
produces amazing coffee, and the community in Hamburg sells a load of
coffee. It is our work to tell this coffee story as fully as possible
and support this farming community to rebuild their lives.
The Ndurutu Primary
school is situated at the end of a dusty road in the village
sorrounded by small scale coffee farms and only 200 metres from the
Ndurutu Wet mill. Last year , through our partnership with Nicole &
Heinz of Sandtorkai Handel Papenhagen, we shipped 30 tonnes of green
coffee to Germany from this community.
Arrival of 15 tonnes of green coffee in Bremen- Nicole ready to receive this amazing coffee
Ndurutu Primary; I sigh....Years ago i attended
this school, like me and the Kedovo gang, the children of the
coffee producers from the village know no other place. Far from
Kenya's capital, most of the families here still have limited acess
to basic services and often cannot afford to pay the stipulated
school fees set out by the Board. The Kenyan education system has had
significant progress since 2003 when the Kenyan government
introduced a legislation for Free Primary School, enrollment
increased but it brought with it a major infrastructural problems
especially in the rural areas, which unless tackled in a holistic Approach will not be ending anytime soon.
To all the People who believe in our coffee, let us not let these children live in the ruins of broken dreams...
All you Need to do is Purchase coffee from my People ;)
Our goal is to supply you with the very best quality coffee. But how do we guarantee this, if our producers cannot afford the basic necessities of life? How do we guarantee this when their children get rained on inside their classrooms? How do we create sustainability and harmonize the relationship with our producers when their children' s school has classrooms that are unsound?
Its out of these concerns that we started the project -Renovation of Ndurutu Primary. What could be better than coffee and giving the children of our coffee farming families a great and functional school?? Renovating this school is giving a much needed hope to a struggling community. Changes must start from the roots.
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Ndurutu Primary School
Classrom
classroom
The school has a
total of 11 classrooms , a meeting hall and 3 rooms which are used
for adminstration purposes. The kitchen is in an unsound state and
currently only used for the preparation of meals for the teachers. By
renovating the school, we bring an amazing impact to the demoralized
children and give this community's young generation a chance for
social and economical development. By starting at the roots, we give
these children chances in the ever developing world, chances to dream
and improve the lives of this coffee growing community.
And our work began....
KEDOVO e.V Meeting the deputy head before the onset of the project
learning aid in class ECD - made from old jute bag
inside one of the classrooms
Survey & Planning
The Roof of the classrooms
discussions on way Forward- the Meeting hall
School kitchen
class ECD & 1, where our Project will begin
class 2 & Meeting hall-
And so.....
We started the
renovations in December 2015, and so far we have finished renovating 3
classrooms and the meeting hall.
The project would not have been possible without the support of Bingo Projektförderung Schleswig Holstein, and on behalf of my people our sincere thanks.
Time and time again
i get frequently asked why these children? Why this community? You
have to understand- am one of them, i am a daughter of a coffee
producer, their pain is my pain- they are my people. Growing up in
our small farm, life was difficult- i can tell you its much harder
now than it was for these coffee producing communities. They have
absolutely no backup- no publich health insurance, no fully free
public schools, if you cant pay for something upfront and in cash,
you dont get it at all!
And the gang got down to do what we do best....changing lives through economical coffee production and community development.
And everyone got down to work
Fixing of new window and doors
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Discussing with our Partners in Jan 2016
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The
Education for Sustainable Development project is so important to us at KEDOVO e.V, we know we are
working for a change, we are restoring dignity and giving my people
opportunities- opportunities to afford basic necessities. I believe
the economic stability of these coffee producing communities begin
when they are given chances and knowledege resources to make a
livable income----this we can do by making sure Change starts from the roots..
and our work continued...
my mind..a thousand miles! will i be able to sell enough coffee to Support this community? I worry..
welding of new doors
Arrival of new School desks
sneak Peak ;)
Handing over the classrom to the Management & the Board of the school
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Davie of KEDOVO organising the ECD class to move to their renovated classroom
The renovated ECD class
with our Team! well done guys!!
handing over 2 of the finished classroom to the chairman of the school- Mr George Karia
Yes we did it!!! Zackie handng over the 2 renovated classes to the Mangement Board
This community is dependant on coffee. Nothing else....unless me and you make coffee production sustainable, their economic and social effects will always be affected. My father turned 65 last year, to him and the rest of the aging community in the village, coffee is their lives, they have nowhere else to turn. They are filled with sad memories of struggle and exploitation. The village is faced with thousand of challenges, from increased poverty to a lack of interest in coffee farming by the youthful generation. There is a lot at stake...
And we continued renovating the classes...
James of KEDOVO Volunteers after a day of hard work
some of the parents helping in the renovations
And we came together as a community
Our model ensures that the children of our coffee Producers remain at School. My father believed that the answer to our poverty situation was through education. He still believes to date that education is the long term key and answer to poverty eradiction.Me and my siblings grew up knowing that education was the only means we could later use to overcome our situation. By giving these children chances beyond the farming villages of The Aberdares is the only way we can break the cycle of poverty and guarantee my people a different 'coffee story'
An excited headteacher & the chairman of the Board meets with the gang
handing over the next class
why would a German sweep classes in Kenya? -Because he believes in our work
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class 2 settling in their renovated modern classroom
remember this class ;)
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I believe......
remember the ECD class with the jute bag? ;)
All over the world more than 4 Million small scale coffee producers live below the poverty line, Ndurutu is amongst them.It is important to practice ethical practices that provide greater economic benefits to coffee Producers.
Lets give their children chances to higher education, chances to see the world
To Nicole and Heinz, our gratitude is beyond words. Without your partnership, this would have been so much harder.And i believe together we will still continue changing lives. To all of you who Support our coffee Project wholeheartedly; Erika, Kira, Manuel, Reinhold, Connie, Christian, Daniel, Stefan, Jonas, Ulrike; just to mention a few, your work is not in vain. Asanteni sana.
Hall before
the hall after the gang descended on it ;)
the renovated Meeting hall
renovated hall & class 2
the finished renovated wing
To continue supporting these communities we have on offer Green coffee (Rohkaffee) from Ndurutu Wet Mill F.O.T Bremen, transport within Germany & the EU arrangable at a cost. Please contact Soni Schneidewind or Nicole Boedgter for information on samples, prices and contract.For roasted Chania coffee kindly purchase from our Online Shop or visit our offices in Kaltenkirchen. Visit the shop & Cafe 'Ein Welt Laden' located at the VHS in Kaltenkirchen , am Kretemoor 40, or pass by at our stand at the Kaltenkirchener Wochenmark every Saturday from 07:00 hrs to 12 noon.
and our work continues.....

Hope
Restored; to the world its a Story book by Kenyan writer Violet
Barungi. To the village of my birth its a new beginning for my
people. A new beginning in 2016 where hope has been restored, a hope
in economical sustainable coffee production and community
development. A hope that one day our story will be known to the
world. It might take another generation for the coffee producers in
my village to fully thrive, but our hope has been restored.
An
estimated 70% of Kenya's coffee
farmers are micro
and small-scale producers.
Many
of these farmers to date are still not able to take care of very
basic needs or even cover the cost of school requirements for their
children.
Our
work is to offer technical advice to the coffee farmers so they can
improve their production methods to quarantee more yield and better
quality. We later on through our partnerships purchase and ship the
coffee to Germany via Direct Trade.
Farmer's field day- Ndurutu Wet mill Jan 2016
Beginning
of January we teamed up with our partners Heinz and Nicole plus a
group of other Roasters from Germany and visited the village of my
birth.It was a new beginning for both the farmers and our partners
whom we have been working together for the last 2 years. Both teams
could finally meet the people who produce our coffee to continue
forging longterm relationships.
Nicole having a discussion with one of our farmers- Wilson Mwangi
the Team being taken through Export & warehousing by Maina of KCCE
Manuel cupping the best coffees for this season
My Name is..... ;)
my father with Holger of German Coffee Associatio
Farmers & Roasters Meeting- Ndurutu wet mill
During
the trip we supported Ndurutu Wet Mill with a new Drying bed made of
steel. This will ensure that the quality of coffee is maintaned
during drying period. The mill has old drying beds made of timber,
which have detererioted due to weather conditions and infested with
ants. Our work towards community rural development is to support our
coffee producers with the necessary tools and resources to improve
their lives.
welding of the new drying bed
preparing the grounds for the new drying bed
Zackie of KEDOVO mixing the cement and sand to fix the Drying bed in the ground
work in progress
HP of Sandtorkai Papenhagen & Davie of KEDOVO handing over the drying bed to chairman Ndurutu Wet mill
My Story is the Story of thousands of coffee Producers all over the world and their families
Coffee
is the only source of income in my village. To us coffee is not just a drink that lands on our breakfast table, ist simply our lives. It provides the economic
backbone for thousands of rural communities. These communities are
the most vulnerable to coffee crisis due to their location in the
coffee supply chain. My village is punctuated by stories of disaster,
recovery but above all humour, struggle and renewed hope.I believe that one day our Story will be the Story of how we overcame the struggles and poverty associated with coffee production. I have hope, a hope of a better tomorrow...
with my daughter on way to meet coffee farmers in Nyeri
During our farmers field day, we emphasized greatly that producing
quality coffee and the development of the community was the
responsibilty of each and every one of them. We explained to them that what we are creating are conditions that can give them sustainable living, conditions to become entrepreneurs. We might be living an Ocean away but we are them- our relationship makes us stronger.
Enjoying a Cup of Ndurutu coffee roasted by Speicherstadt Kaffeerösterie from Hamburg
The day would have been incomplete without Barista Zackie @ work ;)
Joseph, the Manager at Ndurutu wet mill stressing a Point home
one of the farmers looking keenly at Ndurutu coffee from Speicherstadt Kaffeerösterie
Zackie of KEDOVO taking the farmers through our model & the idea of Revenue sharing
The visit by our Partners would not have been complete without paying a visit to Ndurutu Primary School. For those who follow our journey, they know that my heart bleeds for the children of our coffee Producers. In them i see my Young self and my siblings as my father struggled to put us through School with proceeds derived from coffee production. He struggled, and many are the days we lived on one meal a day as the proceeds werent enough to be divided among his 5 children. My mother hawked vegetables in the village on better days.
In those children's eyes i see the unshed tears of a lost hope. And to them i whisper a Hope Restored....
the future of my village lies in their sustainability.....lets give them chances
During the visit we
kick started our great project for the year Renovation of Ndurutu
Primary school.
The
school has currently 150 pupils with classes of ECD to Class 8. Due
to its infrastructure challenges, many of the farmers from the
village take their children to Kirichu primary school which is 3km
away.
By
renovating the classrooms, we will ensure that the children of our
coffee producers have access to better learning conditions.
Conditions that will motivate them to improve their performances and
a plus towards the journey of sustainability.Through this we are giving my community chances to rebuild their lives and restore their diginity.
This trip was not a Chance for the Roasters to make nice photos of coffee cherries on trees and the poor farmers Standing next to them, it was a trip for everyone involved in our journey to establish and harness the relationships that we have established with our Producers, it was a trip to restore hope in the village where i was Born...
Arriving at my old Primary School.... Memories
Nicole of Sandtorkai & avie of KEDOVO e.V handing over new books and other stuff to Ndurutu rimary
Ulrike of CATUCHO watching her sorroundings in Ndurutu Primary
Zackie of KEDOVO showing our Partners the clases targeted in first Phase of Renovations
HP of Sandtorkai breathing in fresh mountain air outside the KEDOVO-PAPENHAGEN Library in Ndurutu
the gang ;)
class 1 Ndurutu Primary- the Phase to be renovated first
und los geht's....kick starting the renovations of the school
ECD Class in dire Need of renovation
This article would be incomplete without the mention of our sincere gratitude to Loppokaffeeexpress.
Special
thanks to Kira, Axel and the whole team of Loppokaffeeexpress of Kiel
in Germany, and their dedication to continue supporting Ndurutu
Primary. Through their partnership with KEDOVO e.V they supported the
school with reading books as well as 15 full pairs of
uniforms for 15 needy children of the coffee producers. Each uniform
costs an average of 20€ which is an amount that some of the
coffee farmers are unable to raise.
The
Kenyan education system requires that each school going children
compulsory put on an uniform.
some of the books supported by Loppokaffeeexpress
uniforms for 15 children supported by Loppokafeeexpress
the gang getting ready for work in community development @Ndurutu village
Davie & Zackie doing what they do best...restoring hope.
some of the Kids with their new uniforms
In
Nov 2014, Kira visited our project in Kenya and she met several
farmers and their families.
On
behalf of my community our sincere gratitude for the continued
support.
We
mainly focus on improving the schools and the lives of the children of
our coffee producers so that we can give them chances to better
education, chances which on normal circumstances thousands of these
children might not have, chances for a better tomorrow, chances which
are key in access to employment or entrepreneurship that will help in
breaking the cycle of poverty. Chances to dream, chances of a Hope Restored.
And we soldier on.....
To continue supporting these communities we have on offer Green coffee (Rohkaffee) from Ndurutu Wet Mill late crop 2014-2015 F.O.T Bremen, transport within Germany & the EU arrangable at a cost. Please contact Soni Schneidewind or Nicole Boedgter for information on samples, prices and contract.For roasted Chania coffee kindly purchase from our Online Shop or visit our offices in Kaltenkirchen. Visit the shop & Cafe 'Ein Welt Laden' located at the VHS in Kaltenkirchen , am Kretemoor 40, or pass by at our stand at the Kaltenkirchener Wochenmark every Saturday from 07:00 hrs to 12 noon.

I
sit and watch as the darkness settle and engulfs the village. Its the
last day of 2015.
view of the Ranges from my village
Its
been 2 years now since we fully started trading. Two years of our
Social enterpreneurship. Two years of transforming communities
through economic development from coffee production. It has not been
easy, i have grey hair but no regrets, this is what i wanted to do
with my life, this is my world. I know that things might not fully Change during my time, we still have a Long way to go....my People know this too and we will still continue doing what we started.
Like
any other business we have had a many challenges and we soldiered on.
We have met and made amazing friends and partners.
The
season is coming to an end. The village is still buzzing with
excitement as we await the new year. My father says the season has
been good, hes very hopeful. His records shows he had 2,150 kgs of
cherry and 100kg of Naturals.
I
still worry. My people though hopeful had a lot of challenges, half
of the harvest was destroyed by frost.The season encountered
prolonged drought, the rain god didnt visit from the mountains.The
last days i have transversed from one range to the other to meet our
amazing coffee farmers. Their dedication and hope makes me stronger,
They have hope and they know that through our partnership we can
together make a difference to their whole lives.
Meeting with our Exporters
Being a year end we will reflect on the accomplishments, the developments and the challenges that have defined whom we are and the Story of my People. It is all those things that have kept us on the journey---
1. In 2015 we managed to ship 2 containers of green beans to Germany.
The sale of this coffee has greatly supported KEDOVO e.V projects on community development. Without this great Support from Heinz & Nicole, our work would have been so much harder. This purchase benefited thousands of coffee farmers and their families from Nyeri and their communities.
This has ensured the intiation of the following sustainable Projects:
http://www.kedovo.org/english-home-page/all-kedovo-projects/water-tanks-for-nyeri/
http://www.kedovo.org/english-home-page/all-kedovo-projects/kamamunda-poultry-farming/
http://www.kedovo.org/english-home-page/all-kedovo-projects/flexi-biogas-energy-solutions/
Thank you all of you for the great Support!
2.Through
the great partnership with KEDOVO e.V we have met our amazing group of volunteers who
dedicated their time and resources to visit, interact and live
together with the communities who produce our coffee.
Special
thanks to Erika Bartels of Kedovo Volunteers who spent a month in the
community development program in Ndurutu and later on took it to her
heart to support those communities by presenting our projects in
Niedersachen, became our greatest ''coffee ambassador'', and through
her network brought KEDOVO e.V amazing supporters. Her dedication is
a tale of what changes partnerships and cultural exchange can bring
to the world.
We
visited Neema Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre on christmas eve, and
supported them with mattreses , blankets etc. We also painted the rooms to make them more cosy and nicer for the children.This would not have
been possible without Erika and her friends from Niedersachen and for
this we will always be grateful. Asanteni sana!
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the gang purchasing mattresses for Neema children's home at Chaka market
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blankets- supported by Erika & friends in Niedersachen
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the children's room before
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rooms after
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KEDOVO Team , Grace and the children of Neema
discussion with Gráce on way forward
Through Erika and her work, we was able to Support Ndurutu Primary with several reading books for the School Library built by KEDOVO gang in earlier in July.
On top of this, Erika and her Team supported 15 needy School going children with School fees for the whole term!
some of the books supported by Erika
Banking Slips -School fees for 15 children
To those of you near or in Roderbruch, kindly visit Kulturtreff Roderbruch on Rotekreuzstraße 19 on January 24th 2016 from 16- 19 hrs where Erika Bartels will Showcase a presentation about her Volunteerism in Kenya in 2015 as well as the Engagements and work of KEDOVO e.V under the title ''Kenia entdecken''. All are welcome.
To
our dedicated coffee buyers , without you this would have been so
much harder! And your support is greatly appreciated by the community
who produce our coffee.
3.Capacity Building
We met with farmers and Management of Ndurutu wet mill where we had discussions and emphasized on the cultivation of Quality coffee. Only by improving their Quality will the farmers be able to earn 'real income' from coffee production. We believe by bringing the villagers together to work towards a common economic Goal we will be able to build Long Lasting relationships and partneships and help the farmers have a hope for the future.
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Management Meeting Ndurutu Wet mill
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Chairman- Ndurutu wet mill
Farmers representative
To all the the People who continue supporting our work, Asanteni Sana! This would have not been possible without you all.
To continue supporting the se communities we have on offer Direct Trade Green coffee from Ndurutu wet mill F.O.T Bremen/ Hamburg, Transport within Germany & the EU also arrangable at a cost. Please contact Soni Schneidewind or Nicole Boedtger for Information on samples, Prices and contract.

In the Central Highlands of Kenya, many Kilometres from the Indian
Ocean, there is a small village called Ndurutu, nestled on the footshills of The Aberdare Mountains , one can see the peaks of the
Mt. Kenya to the Northeast, where the folks -before the missionaries came-believed
Mwene Nyaga dwelt. On the slopes of
this mountain range lies my small , dusty but extremely beautiful
village.
Ndurutu shopping centre
This is the village i still call home- i have lived in many
places before, and i finally relocated to Germany after a year of
deliberation ( story of another day) and i have done everything to
the letter of the book of Migration, but this is where my house is
and the village where I was born; this is the place where I
played my first games with my friends, swam on the banks of River
Chania, and struggled with bags of ripe coffee cherries up the hill. This is
where me and my siblings, sat by the fireplace every evening and
listened to stories told by my mother, stories that were passed to
her by her mother and grandmother.Unfortunately it was not my destiny
that I would spend the rest of my life there.....But i live everyday
with the memories of it, and the hope that my little contribution can
help in changing their lives.
a view of the sunset from the village
On the 23rd of Sept TG Aphrodite sailed from the port of
Mombasa, to brace the high seas, the threat of climatic changes and
deliver our second container of coffee for this year to the Port of Bremen on
the River Weser. On board is again 250 bags of green coffee from
Ndurutu Wet Mill. The sale of this coffee will continue supporting our development Projects in Nyeri, Kenya.
meeting ndurutu coffee farmers in jan 2016 with Stefan
My people planted coffee ages ago, even before i was born, so
being part of a coffee farmer basically begins the minute you are
born. I grew up knowing that our only source of income came from
harvesting those litlle red berries .My people watered these trees
with their sweat and the earth with their own blood, in order to
defend themeselves from the politics and the trade that came with
every bean that they harvested.
across the ridge as seen from Ndurutu wet mill; a small scale coffee farm
I have had several
people asking me how all this coffee journey began, and whats the
motivation behind it. Well this is my story. And its the story of how
our journey at KEDOVO e.V began, a story which we want to change for
future generations of coffee producers.
When i was younger, how did i think about coffee?
I left the village
when i was 17, I just wanted out. My father was hell bent that i
should take the more 'sophsicated and respectable' proffessions, like
being a doctor, or a Lawyer- sigh. But i wanted out, out of the
village and the struggles and the back breaking toil that came with
coffee production and so i left to go and survive.
I ''survived'' and i
was able to see the world and to learn new things. I went to college
and everytime i opened my Economics book and looked at the graphs- i
knew what i wanted to become.
Moving to Europe, i
started thinking of how my people could develop and i realised they
had the best opportunity in the world. They grew coffee that
unfortunately did not benefit them due to the hurdles involved in the
supply chain. They were great coffee producers but not business
oriented. Their story needed to be told, but it had to be a story
that had hope, a story that was a journey to development, a story
that was their story, for i believe its the story of all the coffee Producers all over the world.
What they needed was
a market that could offer them a good price for their coffee and i
believed i could do this. If i could give them this hope again i
believed they would produce quality coffee that would be sort after
by Roasters from the Western world.
This has now become
my world, and everytime i roast a bean i remember my folks trying to
earn a decent living from a crop that comes with struggles .
Everytime i sit at Quijote i worry of their struggles but bast in
their determination not to give up in trying to find chances and
meanings in a world where decisions made many miles from their
village continue changing their lives.
with Matt of Quijote roasting Ndurutu AB
My idea of Direct Trade and connecting the Roasters in germany with the communities who
produce coffee in Nyeri Kenya, is basically an attempt to adress the
problem facing the distribution and sale of Green coffee in a much
different way than the regulated certifications- note: i have nothing
against the various certifictaions out there, only i feel that coffee
producers should have more surelty of available market at good
prices rather than a promise of a ''future market' if they followed
this and that. We should be more focused not only on quantity and social aspects but the
overal economic sustainability of these communities at the same time preserving the quality and integrity of coffee, not forgetting
that communities develop socially if they are economically empowered.
Stefan of Kiez Roastery Berlin meeting some of our farmers
The aim of the Kedovo coffee Project is to factor both economic and social development and where we work with these
communities from a grassroot level to establish exactly what is
required.
Kenya like many of
the countries in developing world, didnt not meet the set Millenium
Development Goals whose term ended in Sept 2015. We now have a long
list of the Sustainable Development Goals to battle for the next 15
years. They say to achieve them everyone needs to do their part. -
They said Goal 12 aims to ensure sustainable consumption and
production patterns, we will do our part- i hope to God the rest of
the world does their part...
Our story hasnt lost
hope and we have had great partners along the journey, people who
amazingly continue to support our work both with the purchase of our
coffees as well as supporting our many projects on community
development in Nyeri Kenya.
The last months the
gang has been busy winding up the last phase of installing water
tanks for water harvesting for a number of our coffee producers, in
line with our project for Access to clean water. This would have not
been possible without the support of BINGO Projektförderung Schleswig Holstein, for the immense Support , on behalf of my people
we will always be grateful.
To our Partners Sandtorkai Handel Papenhagen- you have become more than a partner, you are the family
that we made in a far away land; the people who believed in us
from the beginning, our sincere thanks, and ofcourse to all the amazing
Roasters and consumers who purchase both our green and roasted
coffees; Asanteni sana!
the home of one of our coffee producers who is among the beneficiaries of the water tanks project
Wilson & James from Kedovo-Kenya busy with installations
2 hours later....
The gang ;) huraa! we did it
The beneficiaries
Another beneficiary from last month....
Our Story is a journey of togetherness... and together with the
gang we swore to dedicate our time, our resources in making the other
children of our coffee producers become self reliant. This we can
only do by ensuring they have access and chance to better education
facilities.
For Kenya to fully develop , its children and especially the ones in the rural farming villages, have to be educated, they Need to have a voice to develop in a world where the Odds have been stacked against them. We at KEDOVO only know too well the struggle to complete education....
Last week the team in Kenya went back to Ndurutu Primary
School which is one of the Schools in our Project; Education for Sustainable Development. The School's infrastructure like many rural School is in bad shape, and this time the gang delivered School desks for clas 8 who begin their final exams in November. This would not have been possible without the immense Support of Loppokaffeeexpress of Kiel, and for this my since gratitude. Kira and Axel your dedication to Support my community not only through the purchase of their coffee but as well as other social development Projects means the world to me!
Davie with std 8 Pupils, the beneficiaries of the new desks
together for Ndurutu, thanks Loppokaffeeexpress
The gang having a discussion with the chairman ndurutu primary & the deputy head
In Progress is also our Project on Renewable energy which is basically the Installation of several Biogas digesters for the coffee farmers in Ndurutu. In many rural Areas, the lack of energy is a key drive of poverty.The sytems are quiet unique in such that they are not the traditional cement Systems that are always in the ground and filled up with manure....this has proven to be very expensive over time and queit hard to maintain or even clean up. We partnered with Flexi Biogas International owned and ran by a great Kenyan guy Dominic Wanjihia. The Project is supported by Centre For International Migration & Development of Germany.
The Systems are above the ground and you only need one cow to mainatin the sytem as opposed to the conventional dome shaped Systems where a Minimum of 5 cows is required! currently we have installed 6 Units so far in the village.
The Flexi Biogas Systems
The digesters use any biodegradable matter be it kitchen waste, market waste, grass etc- but our main source of bio matter is the Coffee Pulp! the Ndurutu wet mill is located in a startegic position that all the farmers have Access to the Pulp that they can use either as organic matter in the coffee fileds- its this that we are now using for the several digesters to produce Biogas! we only Need a bucket of water and a bucket of bio matter daily and thats it. The System will produce gas to cook for upto a Family of 8 without a hitch for six to eight hours. Installations are done within 3 hours for 1 System amd within 7 days the Family is ready to start their new life cooking with biogas.Is this not hope for my coffee community? can you imagine the women coffee farmers not having to trek long distances insearch of firewood? or the Kids running from School at the end of the day so they can go to the forest insearch of firewood before the darkness set? they can now sit comfortably at home and relax or do their homework! is that not the struggle and the hope? We are now able to replace pecious Wood with either cowdung or the coffee Pulp.
pulped coffee husks at Ndurutu wet mill
I believe there is need for more successive stories of communities who made it- but this is only possible if communities come together and aim towards self reliancy. We now have hope.
To continue supporting these communities we have on offer Green coffee (Rohkaffee) from Ndurutu Wet Mill late crop 2013-2014 F.O.T Bremen as well as late crop 2014-2015, transport within Germany & the EU arrangable at a cost. Please contact Soni Schneidewind or Nicole Boedgter for information on samples, prices and contract.
For roasted Chania coffee kindly purchase from our Online Shop or visit our offices in Kaltenkirchen. Visit the shop & Cafe 'Ein Welt Laden' located at the VHS in Kaltenkirchen , am Kretemoor 40, or pass by at our stand at the Kaltenkirchener Wochenmark every Saturday from 07:00 hrs to 12 noon.

Have you ever
wondered how it was like growing up in Kenya? Forget the
documentaries and the 'amazing' photos from CNN , BBC and the rest.
For the people who
have been part of our journey, they need to know our past so they can
understand our present.
My name is Soni. I
grew up in the communities of Mt.Kenya and the Aberdares. My father,
his father and their fathers before him have always been coffee
producers. My people have lived and continue living from one coffee
season to another. We have had good and hard times, good times like
after the anxiously waited coffee payments where my father would make
sure we got dressed in our ''sunday best''- we each had 1 or 2 nice
dresses that were only reserved for sundays going to church or for
special occasions- headed to Karatina Shopping centre where we would
be treated with sausages and chips with tomato sauce that had more
water in it that the tomatoes.
We had our hard
times when we encountered the 'thin times' which is basically the
period when income derived from previous harvest ran short. This
period lasts for a minimum of three months every year. We struggled
like the rest of the families in the community, and still toiled in
the coffee fields in the hope of a better tomorrow.
women coffee farmers delivering coffee cherries at a wet mill in Nyeri
My father believed
that the answer to our poverty situation was through education. He
still believes to date that education is the long term key and answer to poverty eradiction.Me and my siblings grew up knowing that education was the only means we could later use to overcome our situation. My family like most of the others in the village didnt own big tracts of land and neither did they have work opportunities in neighbouring towns, they were simply coffee farmers. From my upbringing i have come to learn, to understand and to believe that when a child has access to education, then their way in life has a chance- they have a chance to see the world, chances beyond the farming villages of the Aberdares. Poor people's access to information is very
vital for communities to develop. But how is this possible if their
children do not have access to learning facilities?
my father supporting kids in Ndurutu primary with new school uniforms in 2014
I go back to my
childhood, i am 10 years old. I am in class 5. I live in a village in
Nyeri where the singing of birds wake you up in the morning. Its 5:30
am, my mother wakes me up to get ready for school. I wash my face,
brush my teeth and put on my school uniform. At 6:00 am we have
breakfast together with my siblings, which is basically corn meal
from previous night or if we are lucky a slice of dry toast with a
cup of tea. At 6:30 am we start walking and half running to school
which takes 20-25 mins to get there. At 7:00 am we are supposed to be
in class seated and ready for our prep-lessons. At 9:45 am we have
our first 15 mins break of the day. 12:45 we break for lunch which is
a mixture of kidney beans and corn with ''swimming onions'' in a transparent broth.
Our afternoon
lessons continue from 14:00 pm and end at 16:30 pm when we
leave the school and head home. 17:00pm i reach home and do my chores
of the day which involves collecting firewood or water from the
Chania River and when am done i play with my friends outside.
18:30 pm and i start
helping my mother to prepare dinner for the family which in most
cases will be Kales and Ugali. We drink water from the river and
call it a day.
20:00pm we go to
sleep. Its been a long day for my parents who have been working in the
coffee fields since morning. This goes on from Mon-Fri. And then on
Saturday instead of heading to school at 6:30 am we head to the
coffee fields, to help our parents bring in the harvest in time.
Thats the real life
for the children of coffee producers if they are lucky to be able to
attend school. Nothing much has changed since my time- they still toil from dawn to dusk with minimal or no returns from coffeee production.There are many kids whom during my time their parents
couldnt afford the schools fees and they spent their days helping in
the coffee fields.
I grew up and left
to go to college, see the world and drink Cocacola instead of water in the evenings, or if the gods were on my side a glass of Chardonny.
Three decades later
so many things have changed, but not the lives of the communities who
produce our coffee.The education sector changed, but my village is still a farming village.
In 2002 the
democratically elected government in Kenya came into power, and on
January 6 2003 the governement of Kenya introduced the implementation
of Free Primary Education. For once, primary education was free and
all that was required was for every child regardless of age to walk
into a school near where they lived and be registered to start
learning. From then on the child was required to fully participate in
school until they completed the fully cycle of primary education
which requires 8 years of learning. Enrollment in schools increased
with figures of upto 46% as released by Kenya's Ministry of Education
in 2011.
The program has
achieved measurable successes but this increase into the number of
pupils going to primary school brought as well a major
infrastructural problem.Most of the rural schools especially are
underfunded in terms of teachers,learning materials, buildings among
other amenities.
the deterioted infrastructure; a classroom Ndurutu Primary
Daniel in one of the classrooms in dire need of renovations- Ndurutu Primary
Its these challenges
that have made us at KEDOVO e.V concentrate most of work on the
education of the children of our coffee producers.
For sometime now we
have supported schools like Karindundu, Kirichu & Ndurutu Primary
Shools with various projects below:
http://chaniacoffee.blogspot.de/2014/03/education-for-sustainable-development.html
http://chaniacoffee.blogspot.de/2014/06/we-all-have-dreams.html
http://chaniacoffee.blogspot.de/2014/08/bringing-hope-to-ndurutu-primary-school.html
http://chaniacoffee.blogspot.de/2014/12/the-coffees-our-our-lives.html
We
have had other projects within the community but Education for
Sustainability is what we believe we can use to give the children of
our coffee producers chances beyond primary school and keys to
rebuild their future. We believe through ensuring that they have a chance to better education then their way in life has been paved, they can have hopes and dreams to see the world- i did.
Zackie delivering a tank in Kirichu Primary school so the kids can have access to clean water
Yesterday
the Kedovo gang in Kenya officially opened a newly constructed
library in Ndurutu Primary. The school is really in dire need of text
books as in most cases the pupils are either sharing 10 kids per book
and in some lessons only the teacher has a torn text book that she
uses for teaching.
Arrival of the materials to begin library construction
Davie & Daniel helping with the construction
work in progress
Not
only did we set up the shelves for the library we supplied as well
various text books, though not enough! The school has currently
approx. 170 pupils.
some of the new text books
Zackie the program coordinator & kids from Ndurutu Primary saying ''Together for ndurutu''
The
gang also officiated the school closing day for this term and
organised a prize giving day for the pupils who had perfomed well.The best perfomed pupils received prizes of books, uniforms,
geometrical sets, pens etc as motivational items to work harder.By supporting this generation we can develop the community and rebuild our village. Who knows, among them there might be enterpreneurs in the making.
Davie introducing our volunteers Erika & Daniel at Ndurutu Primary
Erika giving out book prizes to best performed student class 2
All
this would not have been possible without the support of our partner
Sandtorkai Handel Papenhagen. To Nicole & Heinz, i know i have
said thank you a thousand times- but your committment to support my
community hasnt been in vain. We now have hope.
the new sign at the entrace to the offices & library
the new books to replace the old torn text books
an old text book that the teacher was using to teach with that start on page 27 :(
To all the Roasters
in Germany who purchase our coffee- my sincere gratitude.I cannot list all of you here but please know your contribution doesnt go unnoticed. To
Loppokaffeeexpress, Asante sana for your comittment in supporting our
projects even beyond the actual coffee buying, Reinhold in Telgte- it
was amazing meeting you last time- thank you.
meeting with the ''Jungs'' from Telgter Kaffeerösterie in Telgte
To
continue supporting these communities we have on offer Green
coffee (Rohkaffee) from Ndurutu Wet Mill late crop 2013-2014 F.O.T
Bremen as well as late crop 2014-2015, transport within Germany & the EU arrangable at a cost.
Please contact Soni Schneidewind or Nicole Boedgter for information on samples, prices and contract.
For those interested in Kenyan Single origin roasted coffees kindly purchase from our Online Shop or visit our offices in Kaltenkirchen.
Our handcrafted coffees are also available at Engel Eis Cafe on the Hamburger Strasse 23 in
Kaltenkirchen , visit the shop &
Cafe 'Ein Welt Laden' located at the VHS in Kaltenkirchen ,
am Kretemoor 40, or pass by at the Kaltenkirchener Wochenmark every
Saturday from 07:00 hrs to 12 noon.
And the story continues...